Changing History
by AmberStar159
Summary: If you had the chance to change the past, would you? When Artemis Gracy, a gamer and fan of Super Paper Mario, is suddenly transported to Castle Bleck; she is given a chance to change the future of these characters armed with her knowledge of their fates. But, would it be right? And, would she selfishly destroy true love for someone whom she thinks she knows so well?
1. Prolouge: Moonlit Storm

Prologue: Moonlit Storm

"Gosh dang it to heck!" Artemis yelled loudly as she died, again, in the Flopside Pit of 100 Trials. The 16 year old continued to look at her TV, agitation clearly visible on her face. Her dark brown hair was messy and she was wearing a midnight blue t-shirt and jeans.

"Freaking Magikoopas..." She muttered as they were the source of her failure. It was late at night, around 11 o'clock, but Artemis was still awake. She has been frequently staying up later to play her new most favorite game, Super Paper Mario. Her mother felt that this would "break her natural earthly balance" but Artemis did it anyway.

Thought she loved her mother, they were never quite on the same level of understanding. Her mother was what she would call "Spiritual", very serious about the "powers of nature" and in tune with her ancient Native American roots. Artemis was quite the opposite. She is very modern and caught up in today's technology. She had a MP3, a 3DS, and of course her Wii. She was frequently on the internet; reading fan fiction, looking at artwork, and participating in fan discussions and theories. Artemis had only one real piece of her ancestry that she really cared about and that is a necklace that has been a family heirloom for generations. It is a white stone, roughly cut in the shape of the crescent moon. It was said to be made of moonstone. Artemis loved this necklace because it was given to her by her grandmother, whom she loved very much, before she passed away.

Artemis yawned and decided to call it quits for the night. Too lazy to change into her pajamas, she simply fell onto her bed and fell asleep.

Artemis awoke with a start, nearly jumping right up in bed. She looked out her window to see it severely storming. It was still dark, so she figured it must around 1 or 2 am. She then noticed that the light in the hallway, which was on when she fell asleep, was now off. Her mother couldn't have turned it off because she had left the previous day on one of her weekend nature retreats.

"_Hmm… must be a power outage." _She thought. She then left her room and headed down the stairs. She turned into the dining room and opened one of the cabinets near the wall. In it was dozens of small candles, of many different scents. Her mother always has a lot of candles in the house for her weekly spiritual séances. She found a box of matches nearby and lit several of the candles.

Suddenly she heard a loud sound coming from outside the house. She looked out the window to see something rather peculiar. A large black cat was sitting right outside her window staring right at her. The mysterious cat suddenly turned and ran off. Curious, Artemis quickly grabbed her jacket and shoes and put them on. She ran outside into the blistering storm to see the cat now at the edge of the porch, sitting calmly as if waiting for her. As she neared the cat it took off again, running out into the rain and across the street. Artemis dashed after the cat, the winds and rain slamming into her side. She managed to cross the street, but when she looked for the cat, it was nowhere to be seen. Then, seemingly out of nowhere the cat reappeared right at her feet.

"_Ok, I am officially freaked out!"_ She thought after nearly jumping at the cat's sudden reappearance. It was then that the cat looked up to the sky as if it had seen a bird or something. Artemis followed its gaze just in time to see the bolt of lightning coming right down on her. There was a loud boom and then silence. All she could see was black…


	2. Chapter 1: Chance for Change

Chapter 1: Chance for Change

"W-what…?" Artemis muttered to herself as she was slowly regaining consciousness. She was newly aware of the fact she was laying down somewhere and that her surroundings were quiet. She thought at first that the storm must have stopped but then she was suddenly hit with the memory of the lightning bolt.

"_Am I dead?"_ She thought with fear at that prospect. She finally, after several long moments, decided to force open her eyes and see what kind of situation she was in.

Black. That's all she could see at first. She then turned her head around and observed she was surrounded by black walls and ground. The only other color visible is a swirling purple off in the distance. To Artemis this looked eerily familiar.

She stood up shakily and looked around once more. She could now see she was behind a large black boulder, and that there was a small passage way to the side. She walked out from behind the boulder to see a sight that nearly made her fall down again. In front of her was a long black road and at the end of the road was a gargantuan castle, also completely made of black walls. Her jaw dropped.

"Oh my god…. That cannot be what I think it is." Artemis said in awe. She walked slowly towards the castle in complete and utter disbelief. She knew there was no way to deny where she was. She had somehow ended up at none other than Castle Bleck, home of Count Bleck and his minions. Her mind started to race at 80 miles per hour.

"_Wait! What time period is it? Is the game already over or are they all still here? And it they are…"_ She thought and then trailed off. She suddenly smiled.

"If they are then this is my chance! My bizarre coming here aside, this is one of the greatest things to happen to me!" She said out load now that her voice has recovered from the shock. The brunette quickly shook her head back and forth to clear her head.

"_Calm down!"_ She mentally ordered herself. She had woken up here, out of nowhere, after being struck by a lightning bolt. She had to figure this out before she got ahead of herself. She looked down at herself to see she was perfectly unharmed, albeit a little soggy from the rain. What she thought of next was the most puzzling part. Why did it seem like that cat had led her to that spot on purpose? Sure, that sounded crazy but was relatively normal compared to where she was right now. She looked up to see that she absentmindedly, as she was thinking, walked slowly closer to the castle. She was closer now and could see more of the details.

Suddenly a voice sliced through the open air.

"Your chance? Your chance for what, may I ask?" said a smooth, melodic voice from above her a few feet away. She looked up, even thought she had already guessed who had spoken.

And there he was, Dimentio, the self-proclaimed master of dimensions and pleaser of crowds; and, most importantly, Artemis's favorite character from the game and from anything really as of late. She became obsessed with him after her first play through of the game. She's read fan fiction, seen art work, and more. She is of the opinion, like many others, that he is a tragic character and that something terrible must have happened to him in his past to make him the way he is. And whether we admit it or not, we all have that one character whom we have a bit of a crush on even though they are fictional. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending on how you look at it, Dimentio is Artemis's fictional crush. This makes the situation she is in right now kinda awkward for her.

"Oh, gosh, Dimentio! My chance? My chance to… meet all of you guys!" She said flustered beyond belief.

'Y'see I, um, know what you're all trying to do and I completely support you. So I, um, came here to ask if I can, um, help…" Artemis stumbled out quickly trying to hide how nervous she was and failing to do so.

At this Dimentio could not help but laugh out loud.

"HAHAHA! You silly girl, you're like a flopping fish caught out of water!" He said in-between laughter. He continued to laugh a few moments longer before he calmed down. Artemis blushed even more at his comment.

"So, if you truly want to help us, then answer me this." Dimentio said his tone now serious.

"What?" She responded nervously.

"How did you get here? This dimension is unreachable unless you had the ability to transport here directly or a door leading here was opened. No such door has been opened and anyone besides the count or his minions cannot teleport here directly." Dimentio explained.

"I, um…" At first she stuttered and considered lying. After all, who would believe her? But then she thought better of it as she could only image what would happen if he didn't believe her lie. So, she decided on the truth.

"I was hit by a lightning bolt." She said. She then went on to explain in greater detail that she had followed a cat into the rain, and after being hit, suddenly woke up here.

"My, my, this is peculiar! Well, the count will certainly want to hear about this. Come along." Dimentio said after she had finished explaining. He opened the grand door and led her inside, to face the unknown. Well, kinda unknown.


	3. Chapter 2: Into the Shadows

Chapter 2: Into the Shadows

As Artemis followed Dimentio through the dark and empty halls, she was lost in thought.

"_Well, this didn't go quite as I imagined it would. Despite making a fool of myself in front of Dimentio, at least I learned one thing." _Artemis thought. It was now clear that the events of the game were still ongoing. But when exactly? With that in mind, she now focused on her surroundings. At this point Dimentio has already led her well into the castle. They were now passing the Hall of Mirrors.

"_This area was tough! I remember dying here so many times because the platforms were so small and they blended in with everything. Not to mention dozens of Dimentio clones shooting magic at you from every which way!" _She thought with a mental chuckle. It then occurred to her just how strange it was that an area she only had ever seen on her TV screen was now a reality in front of her. It was almost a little creepy. It was then she noticed Dimentio has not said a word since they got inside. She figured, knowing him, that he just didn't have anything worthwhile to say. She knew he would not say something unless he had something to gain from it.

They finally made it past the Hall of Mirrors and then deeper into the castle until they reached their destination: The Meeting Room. Dimentio opened the doors and the only person inside the room was Nastasia. She was looking down at her clipboard scribbling something on it with the pen in her hand as she was walking unknowingly towards Artemis and Dimentio. She looked up surprised to see Dimentio suddenly but then was shocked to see Artemis.

"Dimentio, who is this?" Nastasia asked sternly looking suspiciously at Artemis. Before Dimentio could say a word, Artemis interjected.

"My name is Artemis, and I wish to help you achieve your goal. You see, I think that all of these worlds are far too corrupted to be saved and it would be better to destroy them altogether to create new worlds in their place." Artemis said. She knew that the only reason she did not screw up this conversation like she had with Dimentio because she had thought ahead about what she was going to say. Now she just hoped Nastasia would believe her. Not that what she was saying was necessarily a lie, but still.

"Hm…" Nastasia was nearly silent for a moment considering what was just said.

"If this is true, then that's just great. But we don't just accept anyone who just strolls in here." Nastasia said.

"Well, I had thought that too until she told me how she got here." Dimentio piped in and then told Nastasia what Artemis had previously told him. Once he finished Nastasia was a bit bewildered.

"I've… never heard of anything like it." Nastasia said in confusion and awe.

"Nether have I. That is why I have brought her here. I was going to ask the count if he has heard of any magic like this." Dimentio admitted. Nastasia knew it must be bad if it was a sort of magic that Dimentio didn't know. She may have her own personal opinions on the jester, but one thing for sure is that if anyone knew about magic, he did. Which is why Nastasia agreed to let her speak to the count and left to go tell him. In the meanwhile, Artemis and Dimentio were to stay there and wait.

"Well, that was certainly clever." Dimentio said after he was sure Nastasia had left. Artemis turned to him.

"What was? What I said to Nastasia?" She questioned.

"…Yes, it was very convincing. It was quite a performance." Dimentio specified with a sly grin.

"Well, that's because it wasn't a lie. Not really…" Artemis said softening her tone at the last bit. She looked down, a tad somber, before speaking in almost a whisper.

"The world…has not exactly been kind to me these last few years…" She said sadly crossing her arms over her chest. She then looked up.

"But lots of people have had it much worse than I have, so I have nothing to complain about." She said giving him a sad look. _"Especially you…" _She thought.

It was at that moment that Nastasia reentered the room with Count Bleck walking beside her. Artemis thought she was prepared for this, but she really wasn't. Every thought in her head, everything she had planned to say just disappeared and left her mind blank. It's like when you need to give a speech and the night before you had memorized it perfectly only to have forgotten everything by the time you were standing in front of the audience the next day.

So, needless to say, Artemis was very nervous. She knew that what she said now would determine, at this point, her future. If he refused to let her stay, she would have nowhere to go and no way home. Well, even now she has no way home but she was hopeful the count could figure out something. Despite how amazing this whole thing is, especially meeting Dimentio, she knew that if she did not get back soon she would have a very concerned mother going crazy with worry.

"So this is the girl? Asked Count Bleck" Asked well… Count Bleck. Nastasia said nothing but gave an affirmative nod. The count studied her a moment then continued to speak.

"Greetings, child. I am Count Bleck, master of this castle and fated destroyer of all worlds. Nastasia has told me you know of our mission and aspire to be of assistance." Count Bleck said addressing Artemis with a faint look of curiosity.

"Um…yeah." Artemis responded dully.

"_Come on Artemis! Pull yourself together!" _She chided herself mentally. She needed to think quickly or else. She took a deep breath.

"Count Bleck, it's nice to meet you and thank you for taking time to listen to me. As already stated, I want to help you create perfect new worlds where there is no suffering or anguish. I wish to help you achieve this to the best of my ability. But…I must be honest, for that is not the only reason I am here. Y'see, as Nastasia told you, I came here after being suddenly zapped by a bolt of lightning. I am unhurt but am now stuck here with no way home. So, I was hoping you might know how to send me back. But in return I'll work for you while I'm here." Artemis finished.

All in the room where silent for a moment after she had finished. Each where in their own thoughts after a speech such as that. Then Count Bleck broke the silence with a simple question.

"Artemis, what kind of skills do you possess?"

"Well, I did win my school's archery competition last year…" Artemis said ponderingly.

Count Bleck simply smiled and said: "Alright, you shall start first thing in the morning."

Artemis nearly leapt for joy but contained her excitement._ "Yes! I'm in!"_ She thought with glee. Then, Count Bleck had decided that Dimentio would be responsible for her training given that it was him who brought her in. In the meantime, the count said he would look into finding out about the magic that had brought her here. As for right now, Dimentio was to guide her to her room.

Artemis thanked the count as she and Dimentio turned out into the halls. Dimentio once again took the lead as he traveled through several hallways until they reached a long hall with several doors all on one side. On each door they passed it had the name of the occupant inscribed on it. The first door said _"O'Chunks"_ and loud snoring could be heard coming from inside. The second door said _"Mimi"_ on it with a piece of paper attached to the door that read: _Stay out dummies! Dimentio, that means you!" _ Artemis smiled at the note which was clearly written in blue crayon. They then passed the third door which, as you might have already guessed, was Dimentio's. His door was completely clear except for that his name, like the others, was etched in the door. They then reached the forth door, which had no name on it whatsoever. Artemis half expected it to be Nastasia's room but then glimpsed her room one door over. Dimentio had stopped at the fourth door, pulled out a key, unlocked and opened the door.

The interior of the room was pretty sparse with only a bed, nightstand with a lamp on it, closet, and a coat hanger near the closet. It was then that Artemis pieced together another part of the puzzle. She realized that it must be before the end of chapter 4 as Mr. L is not here where his room should have logically been. Artemis smiled at this small realization before entering the room. She pulled off her still soggy jacket and placed it on the coat hanger. Dimentio handed her the key to the room and then turned at if to leave but then suddenly stopped and snapped his fingers as if he just remembered something important.

"Artemis…" He started, his back still turned.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering, how is it you knew mine and Nastasia's names before we told you them?" Dimentio questioned in a dark and serious tone. He then turned to face her, his eyes staring straight at her as if into her soul. His mask magically reflected a cunning smile undoubtedly hiding underneath.

Her blood felt icy as if in a sudden hailstorm. She felt frozen to the spot as her mind was racing, trying to figure out what to say. At that moment she felt extremely stupid. Of course he would notice! Without realizing it, she had said both of their names before she could have ever known them! Now, Dimentio knows she knows more that she is telling. She once again considered lying but considering the truth worked pretty well last time, she felt she had better go with the truth again.

"…Dimentio, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you before but...I knew who all of you were from the start. And I know everything about all of you. I know this because… in my world, you guys are characters from a video game."

Dimentio was speechless at this admission. He knew she knew more about them then she was letting on but…this, this is shocking. He never could have imagined this was the secret she was hiding.

"So, you say you know **everything** about me, hmm?" Dimentio asked.

"If you're asking if I know that you plan to betray Count Bleck and steal the Chaos Heart, than yes." Artemis replied, steeling herself. Might as well tell him what he truly wants to know, right?

"So, you can predict the future, then?" Dimentio questioned his voice almost harsh.

"More like I know exactly what is going to happen here if everything goes as in the game." Artemis corrected smartly.

Suddenly Dimentio's smile widened as a thought struck him.

"Dear girl, I propose a deal. You tell me of every roadblock or hazard in the way of my plan as it is about to occur. In return, once I obtain the Chaos Heart, you may have whatever your silly little heart desires." He said with a wave of his hand.

Artemis considered this for a moment.

"_If I help him out, then…he won't die! I can save him! And then…"_ Artemis thought.

"Alright, you got yourself a deal! Consider me on board." Artemis said after a moment. It was decided. And from that moment, her life was changed forever.


End file.
